On Friday, #8 Stanford softball fell to #2 UCLA in the semifinals of the Pac-12 Tournament in Tucson, Arizona by a final score of 1-0. UCLA sixth-year pitcher Brooke Yanez (16-1) was the winning pitcher for the Bruins in a starting role while Stanford senior pitcher Alana Vawter (17-8) was the losing pitcher for the Cardinal in a relief role. UCLA advances to the championship game against Utah while Stanford awaits their draw in the NCAA Tournament, which will be announced on Sunday.
BOX SCORE: Stanford vs. UCLA: Pac-12 Tournament-Friday, May 12
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Through five innings, neither team scored as Stanford freshman NiJaree Canady along with Yanez were both pitching fantastic. Both teams had some chances to get on the board, but it was tough due to the quality of pitching that they were facing.
In the top of the 6th inning with two outs, River Mahler reached first base for the Cardinal after striking out thanks to a wild pitch. With Taylor Gindlesperger at the plate, Mahler was caught stealing second base. Stanford challenged the call, but it was upheld.
In the bottom of the 6th, Stanford made a pitching change as Vawter came in for Canady. With no outs, Maya Brady reached first base on a fielding error after which Jordan Woolery advanced to first base via fielder’s choice while Brady was safe at second base as Stanford muffed the catch to secure the out. However, upon viewing replay, the ball was re-secured in the glove in time for the out, but having just challenged, Stanford was hesitant to use up another challenge as they had just burned one in the top of the inning.
The decision to not challenge proved to be costly as Aaliyah Jordan flied out to center field to advance Brady to third base. Savannah Pola then singled to left field to bring home Brady while pinch runner Lauren Hatch (replacing Woolery) advanced to second base. With only one out, UCLA had a great opportunity to score more runs, but Vawter got the next two batters out to keep it at a 1-0 game.
In the top of the 7th, Stanford failed to score a run as only Gindlesperger was able to get on base by hitting a single to first base with no outs. Stanford’s offensive woes continued in this one as they went on to lose 1-0.
For UCLA, this was a big win for them. They hadn’t faced Canady all season long and she was giving them trouble. For them to pull out a win, especially in the manner that they did, has to feel good. They’re in prime position to win the inaugural Pac-12 Tournament against Utah later tonight.
As for Stanford, this loss is a real disappointment. They pitched a great game but once again their offense went to sleep. Ever since Caelan Koch went down with her torn ACL, the offense has really struggled to find a way to replace her production. If they could get even a bit of an offensive burst, they’d be close to impossible to beat.
The other piece of this game that does need to be addressed is some of the coaching decisions that were made. Jessica Allister chose to not challenge in the bottom of the 6th when replay showed Brady would have been out at second base. I understand the hesitancy to not challenge there but given that a challenge would have overturned the call, that proved to be a very costly decision. And then on top of that, taking out Canady after she was pitching five fantastic innings appeared to be the wrong decision as well. UCLA hadn’t faced her all season and was yet to figure her out.
Of course, it’s easy to play the what-if game after the fact. In hindsight everything is 20/20. The bottom line is UCLA is just a really good team and when your offense fails to generate any runs, at some point, you’re not going to keep UCLA off the scoreboard. They’re just too good.
At this point all that Stanford can do is look ahead to the NCAA Tournament. The selection show will be on Sunday at 4:00 PM PT on ESPN2.
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